Nature preserves in Colombia have recently captured for the second time only one of the world’s most elusive and mysterious creatures: a species of singing, emerald-green hummingbird known as the Santa Marta sabrewing. This new discovery is of major importance as it is only the second documented since the bird was first described and the first in more than a decade. Unfortunately, the bird is one of many species in the area threatened by habitat loss.
Santa Marta sabrewing (Campylopterus phainopeplus) was first discovered in 1946 in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta mountains of Colombia. Like other sabrewing species, it has a fairly large build for a hummingbird. Males also have distinctive emerald green plumage, a curved black beak, and an iridescent blue neck that would make the bird easy to spot for anyone. However, the bird is one of the most elusive species since its discovery, having only been spotted once before in the wild in 2010.
The sabrewing’s rarity has become so remarkable that in 2021 a coalition of conservation organizations added it to the top 10 most wanted birds for rediscovery. The release of the list also heralded the beginning of the group’s new Search for Lost Birds initiative, primarily led by the Re:wild organization.
The group has since funded new expeditions in search of these rarest birds, but the rediscovery of Santa Marta sabrewing has been nothing short of sheer good fortune. Local birdwatcher Yurgen Vega was working in the mountains to study other native birds and just as he was about to leave the area, he encountered a male sabrewing perched on a branch. And the bird was kind enough to stay there long enough for Vega to take pictures and videos. Vega says she even heard the bird sing.
Little is known about the habits of the Santa Marta sabrewing, although it appears to prefer woodlands at higher altitudes in the mountains. There are other unconfirmed observations nearby where Vega found it. So, only this discovery, and how it was discovered, can pave the way for new insights into this species, says Esteban Botero-Delgadillo, director of conservation science for SELVA: Conservation Research in the Neotropics. For example, Vega was working with SELVA and other groups as part of bird watching.
However, as you can imagine, the confirmed sighting of a specimen of the species, while important for this impressive bird, does not mean the problems are over. It is also a reminder that we may never see this majestic bird and others like it again, unless more efforts are made.
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